8 questions the UK Government must answer on EU citizens
It is one year since England and Wales voted for Brexit and finally Theresa May has made an announcement on EU citizens living here. Yet the announcement falls far short of what is needed.
We are told that EU citizens will be eligible for “settled status” after 5 years of living in the UK, though how this differs from the current rules that permit EU citizens to apply for permanent residency after 5 years of residency is not clear. The only difference right now appears to be the promise of a new 'streamlined’ process, which is certainly a welcome development given the current nightmarish 85-page form that EU citizens are faced with, and a ‘grace period’ of currently unknown length to allow EU citizens to work towards the 5 years required.
The Scottish Greens are sceptical of Theresa May’s offer here. It was May, as Home Secretary, who oversaw the construction of some of the most arbitrary rules designed to prevent people exercising their right to settle here. According to inside reports, Theresa May was the sole Cabinet Minister who blocked a unilateral offer securing EU citizens right to remain in the UK in the days after the referendum.
Despite this announcement, there are many unanswered questions. We are told that further details of the UK Government’s proposals for EU citizens will be available on Monday 26th. They owe it to the three million EU27 citizens living here to answer these questions:
1) Will the stream-lined process for “settled status” end the bureaucratic barriers that currently exist for permanent residency applications?
Under the current rules, applications for permanent residency mean an intrusive 85-page form. This includes having to detail every single time the individual has left the UK over the last 5 years, as well as providing a huge amount of documentation such as Council Tax bills, leases, and payslips for the 5 years. Most of this 85-page form is entirely arbitrary. To put it in context, EU nationals applying for permanent residency in Ireland have to fill out a 5-page form. The UK process is designed to frustrate genuine applications for residency and must be reformed to match the reasonable standard found in many other EU states.
2) Will rules on comprehensive sickness insurance continue to apply?
The Home Office currently requires students and non-working family members of EU nationals to have comprehensive sickness insurance in order for their years of residency to count towards permanent residency. These rules are in place despite the NHS being free at the point of access and no such insurance being required to actually access healthcare. As a result, many EU nationals were not aware that this insurance was necessary and have been caught out by it when applying for permanent residency. This unfair rule must be ended.
3) Will national insurance contributions made in EU states continue to count towards qualifying for UK welfare, including the state pension.
Many EU citizens and UK nationals have worked in other EU states. Under EU law, any national insurance contributions they have made whilst working in another EU state will contribute to their UK pension when they retire. It is currently unknown what will happen to these rules when the UK leaves the EU. The UK Government must guarantee that years worked in other EU states will continue to count towards qualifying for a UK pension.
4) Will family members of EU nationals who qualify for “settled status” be permitted to join them?
The current family visa system for EU nationals is underpinned by EU law and so it is unknown what will happen to it when the UK leaves the EU. Currently, family visas for migrants from outside the EU are expensive and a bureaucratic nightmare, causing unnecessary stress for families simply trying to stay together. A fairer system must be ensured for all migrants and their families.
5) Will the restrictions on leaving the UK currently applied to those with ‘indefinite leave to remain’ be applied to the new ‘settled status’?
Migrants to the UK from outside the EU who have indefinite leave to remain can have this status revoked if they spend more than two years outside of the UK. This means that if someone takes up a job abroad or leaves to care for a relative for a prolonged period of time they may lose their right to return to the UK. This restriction is already an unjust and arbitrary measure designed to control migrants. All people who qualify to live in the UK must be allowed to come and go as they please.
6) How long will the proposed grace period last?
5 years is a long time to meet the requirement for remaining in the EU. The mooted “grace period” will help EU citizens who have arrived more recently build-up this requirement, but if it is too short it will not apply to all of those who have decided to make the UK their home. This “grace period” must be long enough to ensure all EU citizens currently in the UK can remain.
7) When will the proposed cut-off date be?
The UK Government has indicated that it wishes to establish a cut-off date for EU citizens being permitted to remain in the UK at some point between 29 March 2017 (when Article 50 was triggered) and 29 March 2019 (when the two year negotiating period ends). Until the end of the negotiating period, the UK remains a full member of the EU. Any EU citizens who choose to come and live in the UK during this time of continued full membership must be guaranteed the right to remain.
8) Which judicial body will enforce the new rules?
The UK Government has expressed its preference for the UK domestic courts to have jurisdiction over the new rules, whilst the EU has insisted that this role must be fulfilled by the ECJ. Unlike most of Europe, the principle of parliamentary sovereignty (and absence of a written constitution) in the UK leaves the courts with little power to provide oversight of Government policy. Given the Tory Government’s hostility towards migrants, the ECJ should continue to exercise jurisdiction over the new migration rules for EU citizens.